Yakko's Curse
by Transformersfan123
Summary: Nightmares again. His curse. By the animators' blessings, it was only his. His siblings had no idea of the pain the animators put him through, though most of them were long dead. If he had his way, he would have been the cause of their deaths. For real.
1. The Not Real Past

I recently got back into the Animaniacs and this is something that came back to me while I was watching it. I might do a sequel if you guys want. :) Enjoy

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Nightmares again. His curse. By the animators' blessings, it was only his. His siblings had no idea of the pain the animators put him through, though most of them were long dead. If he had his way, _he_ would have been the cause of their deaths. For real.

He yawned and shivered as blood gushed through his mind, the sound of a woman screaming, and the _boom_ of a gun. He knew if he whimpered or moaned, his siblings would wake. He could tell nobody. Well, there was…but to be serious for him? Another hour of nightmares and he got out of bed and slipped out of the water tower. He was soon in front of the door. He stood there, shaking miserably, then took a deep breath and knocked. If he didn't answer… The door opened. Dr. Scratchansniff looked distastefully down at him.

"Yakko? I am in no mood for your antics."

"I…You're our psychiatrist, right?" Yakko asked weakly. "And th-that means you'll listen to us, right?"

The doctor was about to yell at the child, but then he looked in his eyes. He was in some serious pain.

"Yakko, are you alright?" he asked hesitantly.

"I…Of course," Yakko lied, trying to perk himself up.

"Come in, Yakko."

Dr. Scratchansniff led him over to his couch. The Warner sat down hesitantly, playing with his hands. The human watched him carefully, searching for deception, but the creature seemed truly upset at something.

"Can I get you anyzing, Yakko?"

"I…The only thing that ever helps is a hot drink," he whispered softly.

Soon a cup of hot chocolate was placed in his hands and he sipped it slowly. The doctor sat in his chair, still studying the Warner brother and expecting any second for him to do something zany. But…he just sat there, sipping the drink. His shoulders were slumped, eyes downcast to the floor. It looked like he hadn't gotten any sleep all night, and the clock's hands were inching towards two.

Dr. Scratchansniff was about to ask Yakko why he was here when the boy's hands began to shake. Without any other warning, he stood to his feet and threw the mug across the room as hard as he could. As it shattered, an agonized scream left his lips and he collapsed to his knees, curling up as small as he could.

"Yakko!" the doctor gasped, hurrying over to place his arm around the boy. "Vatever is zhe matter?"

"I hate them!" he yelled, slamming his fists against the floor. "I hate them with everything I am! I hate them so much it hurts! I-I-I HATE THEM!"

Dr. Scratchansniff hadn't seen such raw pain from the any of the Warners before. He wasn't sure what to do. So he did the only thing he could. For the first time he willingly embraced Yakko, holding him close. He picked up the boy and sat down, placing the oldest Warner sibling beside him. He pet him, rocking him back and forth and shushing him gently. Yakko pulled away, wiping the tears from his eyes.

"Sorry, doc," he whispered.

Dr. Scratchansniff watched worriedly. Yakko was still trying to be small.

"Don't be zorry, Yakko. Vat's wrong?"

"I…I can't."

"Come now, you can tell me anyzing."

"But…but _they_ can't find out."

"Who? Your ziblings?"

Yakko nodded. "They can't find out. They'd want to know, and I don't need them having nightmares about it."

"I cannot tell anybody anyzing unless you tell me I can. And past zat, I promise I von't tell them. But you cannot keep zis inside you anymore. Please, Yakko, talk to me."

"Y-you can't ever write this down. We read all your files."

The doctor had guessed that they did that, and he felt a burst of irritation, but Yakko was more important than that. "Very vell. I vill not write it down. Now, talk. It vill help you."

Yakko sat there, tears winding down his furry cheeks. He took a deep breath.

"I wasn't really around to see it. Not really. It was written into my past, with every drop of ink that was drawn into me. It makes sense that only I know it. The other two were 'sleeping' when it happened, and they can't even remember them. They weren't…drawn that way."

"I zee. How exactly vere you drawn?"

"I know what happened to our parents," Yakko said blankly, looking up. "The animators, the writers, they were all in on it. They laughed about it. I know they did because I heard them."

"Vat…Vat happened?"

"Our father stabbed our mother to death then shot himself," Yakko said, glancing shyly up at the doctor. He formed his hand in the traditional shape of a gun and placed his outstretched fingers under his chin. " _Boom!_ Right there." He shuddered. "Do you know what brains look like, doc? I mean, when they're spread all over the ceiling with blood dripping down with them?"

"No…No, Yakko, I cannot zay that I do."

Dr. Scratchansniff couldn't believe this story. If he didn't see the pain, the remembrance in Yakko's eyes, he would have guessed that this was a story concocted by the Warner trio to get him. He silently pulled the boy in tighter, stroking his back. Yakko leaned over, sighing and burying his face into the doctor's shirt.

"It's the reason I went zany," he said softly. "The other two followed and blocked the memories of all the ab-abuse that went on in our house. We were beaten bloody a lot of days. Most days we were ignored and starved. All we had was each other. Father and Mother were both hooked on crystal meth and alcohol. It was terrible. She talked about little her 'sweet little Dottie' doing…grown up things to get more money for her. Wakko, too, but she never followed through with it. I wouldn't let her."

"How old vere you?"

"The animators drew me at fourteen, Wakko at eleven, and Dot at nine."

"Zat does not answer my qvestion."

"I…I was seven," Yakko said shyly. "Wakko was almost four and Dot was two. They were asleep during the whole thing."

Dr. Scratchansniff frowned, staring hard at the boy. "You're not telling me everyzing. Vat are you hiding?"

"I went insane that night. I…did things…horrible things…" Yakko's voice cracked and he shivered.

"Like vat?" When Yakko stayed silent, the doctor tilted his chin up. "You can tell me."

"M-may I show you instead?"

"Show me?"

"Y-yeah. It's one of our zany abilities, pulling people into memories. Usually they're false, you know, what we want them to be, but…it can be used for real memories."

"If you zink it will be easier."

"In some ways. In other ways…it will be more difficult."

With that, Yakko stood, pulling the doctor with him. There was a deep shiver that went through the human's spine as the room around him melted into a dark, dreary place. Dr. Scratchansniff blinked hard, staring at the two…whatever the Warners were. They were clearly adults and they looked high out of their minds. There were open bottles of alcohol spilled over, including one upside down in the female's hand.

"Get your ass away from me!" she shrieked.

"Drunk whore! I want sex, and you better give it to me!"

"So we can have more mistakes?! Besides, you're not the one who has to spend nine months sober just to pop something out that's not even useful."

Dr. Scratchansniff heard two sharp intakes of breath. One was from Yakko, who was standing beside him, crying hard. He looked around for the other source, but saw nothing. He turned to ask, and Yakko pointed to a corner back by the hallway leading to the bedrooms. There, standing in the shadows was a very young-looking Yakko. He was crying, too, staring with wide eyes at his parents, but they didn't see him.

Suddenly, there was the sound of shattering glass as the female broke the bottle over her husband's head. He roared in anger and she screamed lightly and ran out of the room into the kitchen. Seconds later the male backed out, holding his hands up.

"Now, darling…" he said. "I love you. Don't you love me, snuggle-puppy?"

She stared at him, holding the large knife out between them. With gentle hands, he toyed the knife away from her and began to kiss her. The kisses became very heavy then she pushed him away.

"I said, no sex!" she spat.

The next thing anybody knew, the knife was sticking out of her stomach. She screamed and writhed, but the knife came down on her again and again until she collapsed on the blood-soaked floor. He dropped the knife beside her and panted. A soft whimper sounded out and the adult male looked at Yakko. He silently left the room and came back with a gun. He pointed the gun under his chin and looked at the boy again.

"This is all _your_ fault," he growled then pulled the trigger.

The _boom_ sounded out loud and strong, and young Yakko stared in shocked horror at the brains oozing off the ceiling. His expression suddenly went blank and he slowly approached the bodies. He knelt down in the blood, touching it with his furry black hand. He rubbed his finger and thumb together.

"Mommy and Daddy are dead," he said blankly. Then a maniacal grin spread across his face. "That means they can't hurt us anymore! But…what if they get up? They'll hurt Wakko and Dot. I can't let that happen. How can I…?" He saw the knife. He wrapped his hand around the hilt of the blade and gently picked it up. "I know…"

Suddenly he began to hack his mother to pieces. The vision suddenly began to fall apart as the boy moved on to his father. When he was done, blood soaked his clothes.

"Now you can't hurt us anymore!" young Yakko sang happily. Then he danced.

There an explosion around them and the deafening noise of shattering glass as the vision fell to pieces. Yakko hit the ground, sobbing desperately. He was gently picked up again and settled beside the good doctor, who just held him close again. He was numb. For a child to have suffered so much was unthinkable. The worst part? None of it had actually happened. It was all written and drawn into the boy's past. He shivered as Yakko hiccupped.

"Zere zere, Yakko," he said softly. "It vill be alright."

Yakko sniffled. "After that," he whispered hoarsely, "I got Wakko and Dot outside and set the house on fire. Wakko asked me what all the blood was. Do you know what I said?"

"Vat?"

"I said it was juice. Then I waved my hand and all the blood came off and turned into grape juice pouches. We sat there and watched our house burn with our dead parents in it, drinking the blood-turned-juice. I knew I couldn't let my siblings know, so when Dot asked about Mommy, I lied. I've been lying ever since, too. I told her we didn't have a Mommy or Daddy. I told her and Wakko that we were too special for a Mommy and Daddy.

"'Special?' she asked. 'How are we special, Yakko?'

"''Cause we're zany, that's why,' I replied.

"'What's zany?' Wakko asked.

"'This!' I cried.

Then I waved my hands and the flames, which were still leaping toward the sky, turned colors. I changed the colors many times, and they were satisfied with that. I was glad because I didn't know how to do much of anything else."

Yakko fell silent. Dr. Scratchansniff hummed, stroking the Warner's back to comfort him.

"Zo…you need to be zany?"

"Yes…it's written into me. If I stop being zany for a long while, I start hallucinating and dreaming while I'm awake. With the other two, it's all they know, but with me…sanity's overrated anyway, right?" Yakko forced a laugh; it was harsh and grating.

"I zink you need to ztart zeeing me regularly."

"No. My siblings would be too curious and spy on us. I _could_ stop them, but then they'd be suspicious."

"How could you ztop zem?"

"I have more…let's call them zany powers. I have more than the other two combined. I think it's 'cause I'm the only one that's tasted insanity. I can turn theirs on and off at will. And I don't think I was purposely drawn that way, either. It's to such a strong degree that it's kind of scary. I can bend reality in terrifying ways. You know, to the point that it's scary to somebody instead of funny."

"I zee. I ztill vant to zee you regularly, Yakko. How does Tuesday night sound?"

"Night? I didn't know you saw patients at…Oh. Sounds…good, I guess. I put my sibs to bed at ten. They're usually asleep by ten thirty."

"Gut. I zhall zee you at eleven on Tuesday night."

"A-are we done?" Yakko asked, looking upset.

"Ve both need zleep, Yakko."

"C-can I sleep here for now? Please? I'll be gone before my sibs wake up."

The doctor looked at him carefully. "No zaniness until you break out of zhe vater tover tomorrow, ja?"

Yakko nodded. "Okay."

"Gut. Now, vait right here."

He returned with a blanket and a pillow, and Yakko stood to allow him to make out a makeshift bed on the sofa. For the first time in his life, _he_ was tucked in gently. After some hesitation, a gentle kiss was placed on his head. Yakko sighed contentedly and fell asleep quickly, smiling softly.

Dr. Scratchansniff stared at him. After all he had learned, he realized that he could de-zanitze the other two, with lots and lots and _lots_ of work, but Yakko? He needed it or he would be thrown into an insane asylum. The doctor felt his resolve harden. He wouldn't tell Plotz. He couldn't. That grouchy old man would never understand. Ever. And he couldn't tell the other Warners. He could tell his nurse, but he wouldn't. So that left…nobody. Nobody but Yakko. Suddenly, the doctor wondered how Yakko had managed for all those years. Oh well. It didn't matter anymore. Now he was there for the boy.

"You know zomezing?" he asked nobody in particular as he stroked Yakko's head gently. "You're like zhe zon I never had."

The doctor was shocked by the statement, but it was true. And he thought maybe, just maybe, they could get out of this without somebody getting killed because of a past mistake.


	2. Therapy

This was meant to be a sequel, but I decided to continue the story in one piece. Just in case it isn't clear, a while has passed since chapter one. Enjoy!

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Piece by piece, and with strength he didn't know he had, the young boy sawed through flesh and bone. His mind was telling him that this was the only way to make sure his younger siblings wouldn't get hurt. They had already been hurt so much…It wouldn't do to let them stand up again.

"What vere your feelings for zis Yakko?" Dr. Scratchansniff asked calmly

"I didn't feel anything while I was doing it," Yakko replied. "I just know I had to do it."

They were standing there, for the umpteenth time, watching as a young Yakko sawed his parents into pieces. By this time, the doctor was quite used to the gory imagery. He walked over to the busy boy, ignoring the blood that pooled around his feet.

"Vat do you zink of it now?"

"I'm disgusted with myself." Yakko's voice was trembling with raw emotion. "I can't believe I did it, but…"

"But?"

"I'd do it again if I had to."

The doctor nodded. "I zee. Vell, I zink ve've covered this scene enough for today. You never show me vat happens when you get Vakko and Dot. Can you show me zat?"

Yakko nodded, taking a deep breath and the scene dissolved and recrystalized. They were in the children's room. Yakko picked Dot up—she was such a small child—and shook Wakko awake.

"Wha—?" Wakko asked. Suddenly everything froze. The doctor looked at Yakko.

"D-don't laugh at him. He still speaks slower than normal most of the time, but he's mostly healed." That said, the boy waved his hand again, immersing them in the younger Yakko's thoughts and sensations yet again.

"Wha do, Yak?" Wakko asked slowly, sitting up.

"We're going outside, Wakko!"

"Night, Yakko!" Dot yawned. "No outside! Bed."

"No, we're going outside and to set a fire."

Yakko struggled to hold his sister in one hand and guide his brother with the other. Wakko moved to go through the front door and Yakko grabbed his scruff hard, viciously yanking him around the couch so that he couldn't see their parents in pieces. The oldest Warner child threw Wakko in front of him then looked back at the bloody, gory mess in the living room floor. He swallowed and pushed them out the back door.

"Moon!" Wakko struggled to say, pointing up.

"Yes, the moon is very bright," Yakko said kindly.

He set his siblings out in the yard. Now…how was he to set fire to the house? He needed a lighter or a match…He looked around and saw a log. He reached one hand over, a gloveless hand, and pulled off a twig. He concentrated all his mind on the twig in front of him…Dr. Scratchansniff gasped as, in a very cartoonish way, the twig twitched and shuddered until it formed a perfect match.

"You veren't lying!" the human breathed.

"Yeah," Yakko said as his younger self struck the match and set it against the wood of their home. "I wasn't lying. What I saw and did in that house caused me to become zany."

Dot and Wakko both clapped as the flames consumed the building.

"Pretty fire!" Dot laughed.

Wakko was staring hard at the younger version of his older brother. "Why red?"

"Red?"

Yakko looked down and had a brief panic attack. What could he do? What would he say?! He swallowed, and got an idea. He was thirsty!

"It's juice!" Yakko said triumphantly then waved his hand in front of his body. When he brought it up, he cupped both hands together and there were three grape juice packs. Wakko and Dot both squealed and grabbed one. They sucked down the juice as the flames went higher and higher. Dot suddenly got a worried look on her face.

"Where Mommy?" she asked.

Again, there was a panic attack. He couldn't just say 'dead.' Neither of his siblings understood death. He didn't want them to. Ever. And he didn't want them to know of the abuse. So he did the only thing that made sense in his mind. He decided to remove their memories.

"We don't have a Mommy."

Both of them looked confused. "Daddy?" Wakko asked.

"We don't have a Daddy either!" Yakko said firmly.

"But…"

"No!" Yakko snapped fiercely. "We have no parents."

"Why not?" Dot asked; it was one of her favorite questions.

"Because…because we're too special to have parents."

"How we special?" Dot asked.

"We're special…because we're zany!" Yakko exclaimed; it was a word he'd just learned and it fit how he felt really well.

"What's zany?" Wakko asked.

"This!"

Without any thought at all, Yakko reached inside himself and threw out his hands toward the fire. The fire burned blood red. Dot and Wakko clapped. Yakko turned the colors of the fire many times, entertaining his siblings. Dr. Scratchansniff hummed. What would happen next? Yakko had never told him anything past this.

Yakko suddenly frowned as the faint sound of sirens called from far down the road.

"Come, sibs," he said in a tone of superiority. "And I'll teach you how to be zany, too!"

He took Dot in one hand and brought a lick of flame to hover brightly in front of him with the other. Then he grabbed his little brother's hand. They walked away. Instead of shattering, like all of Yakko's memories did, this one melted slowly away, the three Warners laughing in the darkness.

Yakko nearly collapsed as the office solidified around him again. Dr. Scratchansniff caught the swaying figure and helped him to sit.

"Ja, zat vas gut. Very gut!" the doctor encouraged.

"I still wouldn't have held it together through the whole thing," Yakko sighed tiredly.

"Zat is fine, Yakko. Ve are making great progress."

Yakko looked up sadly, tears in his eyes. "No we aren't."

Dr. Scratchansniff embraced the boy, stroking his back. "It is very hard, Yakko, I understand."

Yakko clutched at the doctor, shivering as he cried. He soon cried himself out and lay limply on the couch with his head in the human's lap. He sighed, feeling such a huge sense of relief. He couldn't cry real tears in front of his siblings. It would turn their worlds upside down. He lazily reached over and pulled out a pencil.

"Try to turn this into a pen," he said quietly.

Dr. Scratchansniff cringed as he took it. Yakko was teaching him the zany abilities, and the poor doctor wasn't very good. He could do it sometimes, but always with disastrous consequences.

"C'mon doc," Yakko encouraged. "Just like I showed ya."

The doctor sighed. He let the odd, tingly feeling fill him up as he concentrated on the pencil, willing it to change into a pen. The structure of the writing utensil slowly change from the bottom up. When it was halfway changed, ink suddenly started spurting everywhere. Dr. Scratchansniff yelped and tried to throw it away, but it was glued to his hand. Yakko calmly reached up and the tingling sensation in the doctor's arm increased. The ink stopped flowing and the pen appeared seamlessly.

"Drat," the doctor growled. "How do you do zat?"

Yakko laughed. "I had seven nonexistent years to master it. And to teach my siblings how to master it."

The doctor sighed softly. "I'll never get it."

"You're not putting enough force into it. You're too hesitant about it. Don't think about it, just do it, okay?" Yakko waved his hand and the ink that was still drying formed into sparkling grape juice, which filled two tall glasses. "Grape juice?"

"Zank you."

They sat there and drank in companionable silence. When they had finished, Yakko yawned.

"Time for bed, doc."

"Ja, I agree."

The pillow and the blanket were retrieved and, as per usual, the doctor tucked him in and kissed his head gently.

"Night, doc."

"Good night Yakko. I zhall zee you tomorrow ven you're zany again, ja?"

"Of course."

Dr. Scratchansniff stretched and shut off the main light before slipping into his desk chair and flipping on his desk lamp. He shuffled papers, listening to the Warner brother's breathing deepen as sleep descended on him. The good doctor yawned himself. He had a few things to go over before those special guests came by tomorrow. He checked the clock. One in the morning. Oh well, he thought, better get started and maybe I'll be done before two.


	3. Stevenson

Here ya go! Last chapter for this stories. There might possibly be a sequel to this, but I'm not sure yet.

* * *

Yakko laughed happily as they ran from Ralph. He ducked and weaved before setting up an anvil trap. He spun around and stood still, his siblings beside him. The trap was sprung and the anvil fell, causing the Warners to laugh.

"Eesh, that's got ta sting," Yakko said comically.

"I wouldn't do that!" Plotz's voice suddenly yelled from behind them.

"Yakko Warner?" a soft voice asked.

The toon turned. "Yeah, who's…askin'…"

Yakko stared blankly at the man in front of him. He looked like…but he couldn't jump to conclusions. No, killing the wrong man would be bad. Besides, the man he was thinking of had to dead, or on the brink of it, now. Then the person in front of him said the wrong thing.

"I'm Johnny Stevenson. My grandfather is one of the people who animated you."

Yakko's eyes turned red and he growled low in his throat moving his hand down to the waistband of his pants.

"I have a message to you from him, as he didn't think seeing you directly was a good idea."

"Sending your ass here wasn't a good move either," Yakko said, stretching out his pants and pulling a sharp blade. "'Cause he's never going to see you again."

Johnny paled and backed up. "Please, Yakko. He's sorry."

"He will be."

"Yakko?" Dot asked in a confused voice. "I can't feel my zany."

"Me either," Wakko said, grabbing his sister and backing up at the sight of the blade. "And this isn't the time for a blade. More like for a hand buzzer."

"No, dear brother. It's time for a blade."

Johnny gasped as the sharp edge of the knife was pressed up against the soft part of his chin. When he tried to back up, Yakko pierced his skin and a trickle of blood began to drip down. The human began to shake.

"Please, he really is sorry. He never meant for you three to come to life! They never would have made you suffer with that past if you were going to come to life."

"Suffer? Our brother doesn't suffer."

"Shut up, Dot," Yakko spat, pressing the knife harder into the man's skin; more blood rushed down.

Dot and Wakko looked afraid. "Yakko, ya gotta stop! You haven't done this for years and you're scaring us."

"Bye bye, Johnny," Yakko said, and was about to ram the knife up, but a hand pressed on his.

"Give me the knife, Yakko."

The boy turned to see Dr. Scratchansniff. "Why should I? He deserves to die."

"For vat his grandfazer did?"

Yakko frowned. Damn that made sense. But when did he care about what made sense?

"Yes, that's what he deserves."

"You're not zinking clearly, Yakko. Come to my office and ve'll talk about it."

"I'm going to kill him first."

"No, you're not. You're going to give me zhe knife and come to my office."

Yakko stared at the doctor and they had a standoff with their eyes. The doctor finally won and Yakko pulled the knife out and handed it to him.

"Come now, valk vith me."

Yakko followed, giving one last deadly look at the man before docilely following his doctor back to his office. He sighed and gestured at the couch.

"Yakko, vat vas that?" Dr. Scratchansniff asked once they were settled.

"Me trying to kill a man," the boy said honestly. "And I would have succeeded if you hadn't stopped me."

"I cannot allow you to kill zomebody. It isn't right."

"It seemed right to me. If it wasn't for Stevenson, I wouldn't suffer with nightmares, I wouldn't have waking dreams, I would be normal.

"Zink of it zis vay, Yakko," the doctor said after a very long pause. "Vithout zis Stevenson fellow, you vouldn't be zany, and you and your siblings vould indeed be normal. And if you vere normal zen you wouldn't be a cartoon. Zat means you vouldn't exist."

Yakko relaxed back on the couch and thought about it. "Hm," he said softly. "I suppose you're right…But to make me suffer like that? There could have been an easier way to make us zany that didn't involve abuse and murder and decimating a couple of fresh corpses."

"Zere could have been, for sure, but who knows how zat vould have affected your personality."

Yakko groaned. "Stop making sense, doc. Please?"

The doctor laughed, standing up and settling on the edge of the couch. "I'm afraid I cannot do zat, Yakko. You're experiences make you, you. If you hadn't gone zrough everyzing that you did, or…vat vas written into you at least, zan you vouldn't be you."

Yakko turned to smile at the man. "You're great doc. But I still feel like killing him."

"How about in a couple hours, I bring him in here for a nice long chat. For now, you zleep. You look exhausted."

Yakko nodded. "Okay, doc. Sounds good."

There was a pounding on the door, making both of them jump.

"Scratchansniff! Open this damned door!"

The doctor was in front of the door in under two seconds. He pulled it open and Plotz stormed in, +jerking the still bleeding Stevenson in the room. Dot and Wakko dashed in, too, going for Yakko.

"What the hell is _wrong_ with that Warner?! Attacking my special guest?! And look at who it is! He should be bowing down to this man, thanking him profusely for what his grandfather did!"

"Oh, for ruining my damned life?!" Yakko demanded, standing to his feet; his eyes were red again.

"HE CREATED YOUR LIFE!" Plotz bellowed.

Yakko's hands tightened viciously on the couch and fire shot out of his eyes. There was an almighty crack as the wood splintered in his hands. He stood and flung his hands out, sending the shards flying toward the grouchy man. They pinned him neatly to the wall.

"The man that created me deserves to burn in the fiery depths of hell for all eternity for what he did to me," Yakko said through clenched teeth.

"Yakko?" Wakko asked in a scared tone of voice, grabbing his hand. "You-you're bleeding."

"Yeah? So what?" Yakko growled as he walked over to Plotz. Dr. Scratchansniff was suddenly in front of him.

"Stop Yakko. Now."

"You better give me one helluva good reason."

"Because your brozer and zister are vatching."

Yakko relaxed slightly, glancing back at his siblings. They were huddled together, staring at him with pure fear in their eyes. The eldest Warner knew what he wanted to do to Plotz, and the Stevenson fellow, but he couldn't. Not in front of Wakko and Dot. So he stormed back over to the couch and plopped down, glaring at the CEO.

"Now," the doctor said. "Mr. Stevenson, you stay. Mr. Plotz, get out of here and take zhe younger Varners back to their tover."

"No!" Wakko and Dot exclaimed. "We want—"

"I do not care vat you vant!" Dr. Scratchansniff shouted. "Now, do as I say!"

They all jumped at the tone in the normally kind doctor's voice. Plotz heaved with all his strength, but couldn't move.

"I can't," he grumbled.

The doctor didn't dare try his zaniness. He wasn't good enough. And he didn't think asking Yakko was a good idea…

"Vakko, Dot, please free Mr. Plotz."

They scurried forward and held out their hands, but for the first time anybody had ever seen, nothing happened. The doctor took a deep breath.

"Yakko? Please?"

Yakko stood up and strode over. He held out his hands, bringing everybody's attention to the bloody gloves that covered his hands. Without any warning, the hands jerked back and the splinters exploded out of the wall. With a graceful arc, they reformed to the couch and the piece of furniture was whole again.

"There."

He went and sat back down. Wakko and Dot were latched onto his legs. The doctor frowned.

"Out, children," he said gently.

"Where will we go?" Dot asked.

"Y-yeah," Wakko whimpered. "We can't get into water tower because…"

Yakko reached into his pants and handed Wakko a square.

"Here. It's my power, not yours. You won't be able to get out until I return."

"Yak..." Wakko whimpered.

Yakko frowned. "Go, Wakko."

They walked out with their tails between their legs. Plotz looked back, very concerned, but left. After the door had closed behind them, the doctor had the nurse bring in some first aid supplies. He then fixed up Johnny's chin. When he reached for Yakko's gloves, the toon pulled back.

"Yakko, vhy do you vear gloves?"

"Just a habit I picked up. I don't like looking at my bare hands. I always see my fur sticky and wet."

"Does it affect you that badly?" Johnny asked, slowly, hesitantly approaching.

Yakko allowed the doctor to take off his gloves and treat and bandage his hands as he gave the other man an even stare.

"I have nightmares. I have waking dreams. I hallucinate."

"I'm sorry. And so is my grandfather."

"I should forgive him. But how can I? So much death and gore…"

"I know it is hard, Yakko, but I believe you should forgive him," the doctor said as he set the rest of the first aid supplies on his desk.

"I know. But it's so very hard…"

Yakko fell silent, staring at the floor. He tried to sort through his feelings. It was so difficult to will himself to forgive Stevenson. He was the main person who had come up with his tragic backstory. He sighed, looking up.

"I…I can't forgive him until he asks me directly. But I am sorry I tried to kill you."

"I understand. Somewhat. Grandfather never really told me what happened, except that you were suffering for it."

"Do you really want to know?" Yakko asked slowly.

"Now Yakko, you don't have to show him anyzing," Dr. Scratchansniff said gently.

"I know. But it's time somebody who was related to it, saw it."

"If you are sure, zen I von't ztop you."

"So do you?"

"I feel like I owe it to you."

Yakko took a deep breath and the good doctor pulled Johnny over to stand beside him. Dr. Scratchansniff took Yakko's hand and the dimly lit memory settled around them. They watched through the whole memory silently, though Stevenson looked horrified. The memory started to crack and Yakko moaned in pain. The doctor massaged his shoulders.

"Come now, Yakko. You can do it."

Yakko took several deep breaths and began to seal the cracks. He managed to do it, letting out a gasp as the memory continued forward. He felt utterly exhausted by the time he and his siblings walked into the darkness. He collapsed into Dr. Scratchansniff's arms.

"Wunderbar, Yakko! Absolutely wunderbar!" the doctor exclaimed excitedly as he helped the Warner brother onto the couch. "You actually managed to ztay togezer zis time!"

"Thanks," the boy said weakly, relaxing back.

"Y-Yakko…I'm sorry," Johnny whispered.

"I know." He closed his eyes and yawned. "Tell your grandfather I will forgive him, but I have to see him first and hear his apology from his own lips. Okay?"

"I will definitely pass on that message. Expect him in a few days."

"I shall. Now…sleep…"

"Of course, Yakko. Rest now," the doctor said placing a pillow under the toon's head and covering him up with a blanket.

Yakko fell asleep almost immediately. Johnny looked at Dr. Scratchansniff.

"He really didn't mean for them to come to life. He just made Yakko's zany power way too strong."

"Hopefully, ven he apologizes, it vill heal the poor boy a bit. He vill alvays have zhe nightmares, and he vill alvays be zany. But I'm villing to help him for as long as I can."

Johnny nodded. "I'll leave you to it, then. See you in a few days."

He left and Dr. Scratchansniff was about to sit down when he heard a soft noise. It sounded like a whimper. Then there was the sound of a sniffle.

"No," he whispered in horror.

He followed the noises then peaked under the couch. There, huddled together, was Wakko and Dot. The doctor growled out a curse word then gently pulled the two distressed Warners out from under the piece of furniture. He didn't dare wake Yakko yet. The two children clutched at him, crying hard. He needed a place to comfort them. He waved his hand as well as he could and the floor started rippling. Wakko and Dot turned.

"Again," Wakko said brokenly. "Do it again, but concentrate harder."

Dr. Scratchansniff set the two Warners down and waved his hand harder. To his delight, another couch started forming out of the floor. He focused all his attention on the partially formed piece of furniture and felt the tingling sensation almost consume him. For the first time, nothing bad happened as he succeeded. He let out a shaky breath and led the two children over to the new couch, sitting down and pulling them onto his lap.

"Now, little vones, how much did you zee?"

"Everything," Wakko said quietly.

"Ah. I zee. I…I'm sorry, Yakko didn't vant you to find out, especially not like zis."

"He c-cut up…but he said that we didn't have a mommy and daddy…" Dot muttered then sobbed softly.

"Zis is exactly vhy he said zat."

The two Warners went silent, save for soft sobs and sniffles. The doctor held them lightly until they fell asleep then tucked them gently beside Yakko. The human then went to work on a few things. Several hours later, Yakko stepped in front of his desk, startling him.

"Oh! Yakko, I didn't realize you vere avake."

"They know." The toon's voice was devoid of any emotions.

"Yes," Dr. Scratchansniff said, looking away from the boy.

"I…I'm going to make a huge dinner. That always helps. What do you want?"

"Oh…How about sauerbraten?"

Yakko smiled. "Sure. We've tried pretty much every kind of food, so I'm sure I have a recipe for that."

Two hours later, the feast was set, and as the last couple dishes hit the long table that Yakko had conjured, Wakko and Dot woke up. They both looked at the food then at Yakko before averting their eyes. Yakko approached them hesitantly.

"I know you two are hungry. We skipped breakfast, Dot, and Wakko only ate a little."

They shyly stood and walked over to the table. Yakko waved Dr. Scratchansniff over and they all dug in. Just when the doctor thought he couldn't eat anymore, desserts came out. He sighed in delight when it was over and the younger Warner siblings did, too. They looked at Yakko, who was still pushing around a few potatoes. He hadn't eaten a single bite.

"Yakko, please eat zomezing," Dr. Scratchansniff said softly.

"I'm not hungry," he said, resolutely looking down at his plate. He actually felt a little sick.

"He won't eat until we talk about it," Dot said.

"Yeah. That's about how this goes," Wakko said with a nod.

"Oh. Zo who ztarts?" There was no response so Dr. Scratchansniff hummed. "Alright, I vill choose who ztarts. Vakko, tell your brozer vat you zaw."

"I…He knows what I saw," Wakko said softly. "And I…remember…Dad hitting me in the head. I was so little, so very little. And after that, I couldn't talk right for a long time."

"Mommy used to smoke," Dot said then shivered. "I used to cough a lot, to the point where I'd throw up. She'd get really mad at me and spank me. I never really understood why, either."

"That's one of the reasons I lied to you. I didn't want you to remember what they did to you."

"I'd rather remember than have you lie to us, Yakko," Wakko said, moving to sit on his big brother's lap.

"Oof!" Yakko said dramatically. "C'mon Wakko! You're heavy after you eat!"

Wakko and Dot laughed, and the female Warner sibling dashed over and sat on the other side.

"Pure cuteness!" Yakko said, wrapping his arm around them.

"Of course I am," Dot said importantly.

Yakko sighed and snuggled close. "I'm sorry sibs. I just wanted to protect you." There was a pause. "Doc?"

"Yes Yakko?"

"You're probably going to have to start seeing all three of us. I'm almost sure they'll start having nightmares of repressed memories."

"It's alright, Yakko. I'm perfectly villing to help you out."

"Thanks." Yakko paused. "You know you're a lot like the father our dad wasn't."

Dr. Scratchansniff felt his cheeks warm. "Well…Zank you, Yakko. Zat means a lot to me." There was yet another pause. "Um, let's talk about you kidzes. Are you alright?"

Dot and Wakko shook their heads. Yakko flinched, hugging his brother and sister tight.

"Let us go, Yak," Wakko said. "Eat something. You haven't eaten all day."

"I'm not hungry," he muttered.

"Eat," Dot said as she and Wakko peeled themselves off him.

Wakko cleaned off the cold food and scooped some hot chicken and mashed potatoes smothered in brown gravy on the plate. Yakko swallowed convulsively, but when his siblings looked at him with that 'eat or else' look, he slowly began to eat the mashed potatoes. He was sure he would hurl after the first few bites, but hunger took him over and he ate a very good portion of the remaining food. He finished and sat there, reluctant to move.

"What else do you remember?" he finally asked.

"It's all a jumbled mess right now," Wakko said thoughtfully. "But none of it seems very good."

"Pain. I remember lots of pain. Right here," Dot said tracing a long line down her arm.

"You sliced your arm open. I had to bandage you up because our parents were too high."

"Vell, I vill be here for you if you ever need to talk," the doctor said softly.

They nodded, and Yakko repeated, "I'm sure they will."

"I'm here for you, too, Yakko," Dr. Scratchansniff said with a nod.

"Thanks doc. I think we're going to rest for the rest of the day. Mind if we stay here?"

"Not at all. Just try to be qviet for a vhile. I need to get some paperwork done."

They nodded and Yakko pulled out a card game. The doctor watched as they began to play. Healing would take time. A lot of time. But he would be there for as long as he could be.


End file.
